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The path to making it in music has never been linear. In the social media age, it’s become a bit cleaner – blog support, streaming and ravenous music fans on the Internet rallying behind you can quickly take an artist out of local obscurity and into the national spotlight. For DC’s SHAED, an electro-pop trio formed in 2016, a combination of almost every success marker in music of the past 20 years brought them to where they are now.

In the literal
sense, they’ve joined On Tap outside the LINE Hotel in Adams Morgan on a sunny
spring day. The trio of vocalist Chelsea Lee and twin brothers and
multi-instrumentalists Max and Spencer Ernst arrived with all their gear in
tow, and after our interview were straight off to New York. While radio play,
streaming support and a strong fanbase all tangibly factored into their
meteoric rise to success with only EPs and singles released, it’s their sheer
hustle and willpower to make it in an industry constantly changing and
challenging them that’s perhaps the key factor in their ascension.

“The last six
months, we’ve been on a headlining tour,” Lee says. “We did a lot of radio
promo, we’re working on an album and we’ve been writing a ton. It’s been
really, really great. Obviously, the Apple commercial lifted off a bunch of
things for us.”

The Apple commercial
in question wasn’t even just an Apple commercial. When the new MacBook Air
debuted at the end of 2018 at the annual Apple summit, SHAED’s song
“Trampoline” soundtracked CEO Tim Cook’s unveiling. An artist’s song appearing
as a sync in these iconic commercials is a badge of honor after the brand
established itself as a musical tastemaker in the early 2000s. With this kind
of exposure, doors begin to open – and quickly. But the band didn’t even know
when to expect the change.

“Like nine months
ago, Apple reached out to us because they were interested in using
‘Trampoline,’” Max explains. “We got them all the files, but then didn’t really
hear anything for months. Two weeks before the commercial actually aired, they
reached out and said, ‘We’re going to use your song.’ They didn’t tell us what it was for, and they
didn’t tell us until that day. So the day everyone else saw the commercial was
they day we saw it, too.”

“Tim Cook did the
announcement in Brooklyn and I was like, ‘Let’s just livestream this and we’ll
see what’s going on,” Lee adds. “Spencer and I were in the car driving, Max was
at home and I just put it on. And Tim Cook goes, ‘Aaaaand the MacBook Air!’ I
said to Spencer, ‘Wouldn’t it be so funny if our song came on?’ and it did.
Spencer and I had to pull over and scream.”

“Trampoline” is a
perfect introduction to the band’s polished, haunting pop sound. Its lyrics
could even serve as an ethos to another thing that’s made the band so
successful – their connection to one another. Friends for many years while
pursuing other musical endeavors – Lee as a solo artist and twin brothers Max
and Spencer as alt-folk band The Walking Sticks – their relationships
eventually blossomed into the band as it exists today. Lee and Spencer are
married, and the three live together and have a palpable bond evident in person
and in their music.

The chorus in
“Trampoline” is the somewhat wistful, “When I dream of dying // I never felt so
loved.” Spencer says it’s all about embracing your worst fears and finding joy
in what terrifies you. To be able to write a lyric this heavy, the people
around you must love you very much. It’s clear this is the case for each member
of the band. Their incredibly deep bond goes beyond allowing them to make great
music; it allows them to embrace the unknown in all aspects of their lives, no
matter how frightening.

The trio works on
music from a studio in their shared home. They’re the first to admit that
spending so much time together, even outside of recording or touring, would be
less than ideal for many musicians. But from the outside, it’s clear it’s given
them an edge.

“Our routine is to
get up in the morning, eat breakfast and go right into the studio,” Lee says.
“Over the years, we’ve gotten more comfortable with each other. We’ve been able
to work through problems. Getting to know each other is such a complex thing and
then on top of that, living together and spending so much time together…”

“It’s a unique
dynamic, for sure,” Max says, finishing Lee’s thought. “I’m sure it wouldn’t
work for a lot of people. But we just love making music together. Financially,
too, it’s great.”

Spencer notes that,
“There are times, clearly, when you spend so much time together you get on each
other’s nerves.”

“But we give each
other our space,” Lee continues. “It works out great for us. We’re traveling
all the time now. We definitely get on each other’s nerves. But we also
definitely know how to handle it and work smoothly through things.”

In addition to the
support they provide each other, their native DC is also essential to SHAED’s
success. They credit local outlets, venues and fans for their early successes,
and for still following closely as they enjoy their newfound mainstream
notoriety.

“It’s not a huge
scene, but it’s very tightknit,” Max says of their experiences at home. “If
you’re making cool music here, there’s ways to be seen and there’s an audience
for it. People still come out to shows – even if you’re not on a huge
headlining run around the country – people still come out and support local
artists.”

This summer sees the
band off to a whole host of amazing new endeavors including sets at festivals
like Japan’s Fuji Rock, BottleRock in Napa Valley and Lollapalooza. With tons
of material in their arsenal, the trio is in the process of putting together a
new album and aiming for a fall release and subsequent tour. All of these
events will surely invite new fans into their intimate sonic world, but in the
meantime, they’re leaning on each other as things continue to evolve.

“Being a musician
and being in this world is so hard,” Lee says as she puts one arm around each
Ernst brother, and they lean into her. “To have this constant support – these
people that you can rely on and trust and feel at home with – is huge for us.
These two are the kindest people in the whole world. It’s really nice to have
that family vibe.”

SHAED play DC101
Kerfuffle on Sunday, May 19 at Merriweather Post Pavilion. Tickets start at
$55. Gates open at 4 p.m. and the show begins at 4:30 p.m. For more on the
event, visit www.dc101.iheart.com.
For more on SHAED, visit www.shaedband.com.

https://ontaponline.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/HEADER-Photos-Trent-Johnson.jpg336650M.K. Koszyckihttps://ontaponline.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/OnTap_Magazine.pngM.K. Koszycki2019-04-27 08:00:572019-05-20 12:17:45SHAED Rise To The Top Together